First-Year Player Draft History

Draft Report: 1980s

The 1980 June draft was marked by controversy. The Yankees had to forfeit their selection of Billy Cannon, Jr. after Commissioner Bowie Kuhn ruled that the club was guilty of tampering. Other major league clubs accused Cannon's father, former Heisman Trophy winner and NFL star Billy Sr., who had written 25 teams explaining that his son had planned to attend college and there was no reason to waste a draft pick on him. Those clubs agreed and when it came time for the Yankees to pick in the third round, Cannon, who under normal circumstances would have been a first round selection, was available. After the selection was ruled void, Cannon chose to attend Texas A&M and was later a draft pick of the Dallas Cowboys.

The Yankees' cross-town rival fared much better in the draft. The Mets had three first round selections and picked Darryl Strawberry (number one overall), Billy Beane and John Gibbons with those picks. Three years later, Strawberry was the National League's Rookie of the Year.

The 1981 draft illustrated a shift from the drafting of high school players to collegiate players. Of the first 50 players selected in June, 34 were from college programs, more than double the previous highest total.

Seventeen first round picks were from colleges. The previous high was nine in 1979 and 1980. It was also the first draft in which college players went 1-2, as the Mariners selected Oral Roberts pitcher Mike Moore and the Cubs followed with Wichita State outfielder Joe Carter.

The Yankees chose John Elway, who did not play in the Yankee farm system in 1981, but signed a contract that allowed him to play minor league ball for New York in 1982. After a few games with Oneonta in 1982, Elway decided to pursue a career in football.

First Round - June, Regular Phase

Pick

Team

Player

Position

College/Hometown

1.

Mariners

Mike Moore

RHP

Oral Roberts U

2.

Cubs

Joe Carter

OF

Wichita State U

3.

Angels

Dick Schofield

SS

Springfield, IL

4.

Mets

Terry Blocker

OF

Tennessee State U

5.

Blue Jays

Matt Williams

RHP

Rice U

6.

Padres

Kevin McReynolds

OF

U of Arkansas

7.

White Sox

Daryl Boston

OF

Cincinnati, OH

8.

Cardinals

Bobby Meacham

SS

San Diego State U

9.

Rangers

Ron Darling

RHP

Yale U

10.

Giants

Mark Grant

RHP

Joliet, IL

11.

Twins

Mike Sodders

3B

Arizona State U

12.

Braves

Jay Roberts

OF

Centralia, WA

13.

Indians

George Alpert

OF

Livingston, NJ

14.

Pirates

Jim Winn

RHP

John Brown U

15.

Athletics

Tim Pyznarski

3B-OF

Eastern Illinois U

16.

Cubs

Vance Lovelace

LHP

Tampa, FL

17.

Tigers

Ricky Barlow

RHP

Woodville, TX

18.

Expos

Darren Dilks

LHP

Oklahoma State U

19.

Red Sox

Steve Lyons

OF-SS

Oregon State U

20.

Phillies

Johnny Abrego

RHP

San Jose, CA

21.

Blue Jays

John Cerutti

LHP

Amherst College

22.

Dodgers

Dave Anderson

SS

Memphis State U

23.

Royals

Dave Leeper

OF

U of Southern California

24.

Rangers

Al Lachowicz

RHP

U of Pittsburgh

25.

Red Sox

Kevin Burrell

C

Poway, CA

26.

Padres

Frank Castro

C

U of Miami

1982

The New York Mets had a banner draft in 1982. Their top pick, Dwight Gooden, would earn National League Rookie of the Year honors two years later and each of their first five selections - Gooden, Floyd Youmans (2nd round), Roger McDowell (3rd round), Tracy Jones (4th round) and Gerald Young (5th round) - went on to play in the big leagues. Jones was the only one not to sign with the Mets.

The Cardinals also had an outstanding draft, picking up pitcher Todd Worrell (1st round), third baseman Terry Pendleton (7th round) and outfielder Vince Coleman (10th round), one of the draft's biggest steals. The most interesting pick was once again made by the Yankees, who selected Bo Jackson in the second round.

Hard-throwing Tim Belcher, selected by the Twins, became only the second number one pick in the history of the draft not to sign a contract. The other number one pick who didn't sign was high school catcher Danny Goodwin, picked by the White Sox in 1971.

The steal of the draft was Boston's selection of Roger Clemens in the first round, the 18th pick overall. Others selected in the 1983 June draft included Kurt Stillwell (Cincinnati), Jeff Klunkel (Texas), Joel Davis (Chicago White Sox) and Wally Joyner (California). San Francisco chose Robby Thompson in the secondary phase of the June draft.

First Round - June, Regular Phase

Pick

Team

Player

Position

College/Hometown

1.

Twins

*Tim Belcher

RHP

Mt. Vernon Nazarene Col

2.

Reds

Kurt Stillwell

SS

Thousand Oaks, CA

3.

Rangers

Jeff Kunkel

SS

Rider College

4.

Mets

Eddie Williams

3B

San Diego, CA

5.

Athletics

Stan Hilton

RHP

Baylor U

6.

Cubs

Jackie Davidson

RHP

Everman, TX

7.

Mariners

Darrel Akerfelds

RHP

Mesa College

8.

Astros

Robbie Wine

C

Oklahoma State U

9.

Blue Jays

Matt Stark

C

Hacienda Heights, CA

10.

Padres

Ray Hayward

LHP

Oklahoma U

11.

Indians

Dave Clark

OF

Jackson State U

12.

Pirates

Ron DeLucchi

OF

Moraga, CA

13.

White Sox

Joel Davis

RHP

Jacksonville, FL

14.

Expos

Rich Stoll

RHP

U of Michigan

15.

Tigers

Wayne Dotson

RHP

Lubbock, TX

16.

Expos

Brian Holman

RHP

Wichita, KA

17.

Mariners

Terry Bell

C

Old Dominion U

18.

Dodgers

Erik Sonberg

LHP

Wichita State U

19.

Red Sox

Roger Clemens

RHP

U of Texas

20.

Mets

Stan Jefferson

OF

Bethune-Cookman College

21.

Royals

Gary Thurman

OF

Indianapolis, IN

22.

Phillies

Ricky Jordan

1B

Sacramento, CA

23.

Angels

Mark Doran

OF

U of Wisconsin

24.

Cardinals

Jim Lindeman

3B

Bradley U

25.

Orioles

Wayne Wilson

RHP

Redondo Beach, CA

26.

Brewers

Dan Plesac

LHP

North Carolina St. U

* Did not sign

1984

Of the 25 first round selections in the 1984 draft, 17 had played Major League Baseball by the start of the 1988 season. Sixteen of those players were on the original 30-man Olympic roster and a June draft record 18 were from colleges. Even the Cincinnati Reds, who had never selected a college player as their first pick, chose Seton Hall's Pat Pacillo in the first round.

The New York Mets made Shawn Abner, a high school outfielder from Pennsylvania, the number one pick. There had been speculation that for the first time ever, brothers would be chosen in the first round. But Abner's older brother, Ben, was not selected until the 5th round by the Expos.

Six of the first eight draft picks from the June regular phase had at least one full year of major league experience prior to the start of the 1987 season. Included in that list were B.J. Surhoff (Milwaukee), the draft's number one pick, Will Clark (San Francisco), Bobby Witt (Texas), Barry Larkin (Cincinnati), Pete Incaviglia (Montreal) and Barry Bonds (Pittsburgh).

Incaviglia was selected eighth overall by the Expos, but was unable to reach a contract and was traded to Texas. He made his major league debut on Opening Day 1986 as the Rangers' left fielder, becoming just the 15th drafted player to go directly to the majors.

First Round - June, Regular Phase

Pick

Team

Player

Position

College/Hometown

1.

Brewers

B.J. Surhoff

C

U of North Carolina

2.

Giants

Will Clark

1B

Mississippi State U

3.

Rangers

Bobby Witt

RHP

U of Oklahoma

4.

Reds

Barry Larkin

SS

U of Michigan

5.

White Sox

Kurt Brown

C

Glendora, CA

6.

Pirates

Barry Bonds

OF

Arizona State U

7.

Mariners

Mike Campbell

RHP

U of Hawaii

8.

Expos

Pete Incaviglia

OF

Oklahoma State U

9.

Indians

Mike Poehl

RHP

U of Texas

10.

Dodgers

Chris Gwynn

OF

San Diego State U

11.

Athletics

Walt Weiss

SS

U of North Carolina

12.

Astros

Cameron Drew

OF

U of New Haven

13.

Twins

Jeff Bumgarner

RHP

Richland, WA

14.

Braves

Tommy Greene

RHP

Whiteville, NC

15.

Angels

Willie Fraser

RHP

Concordia College

16.

Phillies

Trey McCall

C

Abingdon, VA

17.

Royals

Brian McRae

SS

Blue Springs, FL

18.

Cardinals

Joe Magrane

LHP

U of Arizona

19.

Angels

Mike Cook

RHP

U of South Carolina

20.

Mets

Gregg Jefferies

SS

Millbrae, CA

21.

Red Sox

Dan Gabriele

RHP

Walled Lake, MI

22.

Cubs

Rafael Palmeiro

OF

Mississippi State U

23.

Padres

Joey Cora

SS

Vanderbilt U

24.

Cubs

Dave Masters

RHP

U of California

25.

Blue Jays

Greg David

OF

Naples, FL

26.

Tigers

Randy Nosek

RHP

Chillicothe, MO

1986

1986 was the final year of the January Free Agent Draft. Since 1966, the January draft had been held for junior college players and those whose eligibility had expired. It also marked the final year of the draft being conducted in two phases, regular and secondary. Beginning in 1987, the Rule 4 draft would be conducted in June only, consisting of just one phase.

A total of 436 selections were made in the January draft and 1,004 in the June draft. Philadelphia led the way with 29 selections in January's regular phase, while the 48 selections each by Houston and Baltimore were tops in the June regular phase. Draftees with college baseball experience continued to outnumber high school draftees by a 2-1 margin. Selections from the June regular phase included 662 college players compared to 334 high school prospects. Sixty-four percent of the total selections (646) signed professional contracts, including 76 percent (504) of the college draftees and 43 percent (142) of the high school draftees.

First Round - June, Regular Phase

Pick

Team

Player

Position

College/Hometown

1.

Pirates

Jeff King

3B

U of Arkansas

2.

Indians

Greg Swindell

LHP

U of Texas

3.

Giants

Matt Williams

SS

U of Nevada-Las Vegas

4.

Rangers

Kevin Brown

RHP

Georgia Tech

5.

Braves

Kent Mercker

LHP

Dublin, OH

6.

Brewers

Gary Sheffield

SS

Tampa, FL

7.

Phillies

Brad Brink

RHP

U of Southern California

8.

Mariners

Patrick Lennon

SS

Whiteville, NC

9.

Cubs

Derrick May

OF

Newark, DE

10.

Twins

Derek Parks

C

Upland, CA

11.

Padres

Thomas Howard

OF

Ball State U

12.

Athletics

Scott Hemond

C

U of South Florida

13.

Astros

Ryan Bowen

RHP

Hanford, CA

14.

Red Sox

*Greg McMurtry

OF

Brockton, MA

15.

Expos

Kevin Dean

OF

Vallejo, CA

16.

Angels

Roberto Hernandez

RHP

U of South Carolina

17.

Reds

Scott Scudder

RHP

Blossom, TX

18.

Tigers

Phil Clark

C

Crockett, TX

19.

Dodgers

Mike White

OF

Loudon, TN

20.

White Sox

Grady Hall

LHP

Northwestern U

21.

Mets

Lee May

OF

Cincinnati, OH

22.

Angels

Lee Stevens

OF

Lawrence, KS

23.

Cardinals

Luis Alicea

2B

Florida State U

24.

Royals

Tony Clements

SS

Chino, CA

25.

Angels

Terry Carr

OF

Salisbury, MD

26.

Blue Jays

Earl Sanders

RHP

Jackson State U

* Did not sign

1987

A record 1,263 selections were made in 75 rounds. The previous record was established in 1967 when 1,162 draftees were chosen. Kansas City led the way with 74 selections, followed by Toronto with 71 and the New York Mets and Cincinnati Reds with 61 each.

Of the 832 players chosen from two and four-year schools, 630 (76 percent) signed contracts. Only 160 (39 percent) of the 415 high school draftees reached agreements.

The Mariners made Ken Griffey, Jr., the son of major league Ken, Sr., the nation's number one pick. Others selected in the first round included Jack McDowell (Chicago White Sox), Derek Lilliquist (Atlanta), Delino DeShields (Montreal), Mike Remlinger (San Francisco), Jack Armstrong (Cincinnati) and Craig Biggio (Houston).

First Round

Pick

Team

Player

Position

College/Hometown

1.

Mariners

Ken Griffey, Jr.

OF

Cincinnati, OH

2.

Pirates

Mark Merchant

OF

Oviedo, FL

3.

Twins

Willie Banks

RHP

Jersey City, NJ

4.

Cubs

Mike Harkey

RHP

Cal State Fullerton

5.

White Sox

Jack McDowell

RHP

Stanford U

6.

Braves

Derek Lilliquist

LHP

U of Georgia

7.

Orioles

Chris Myers

LHP

Tampa, FL

8.

Dodgers

Dan Opperman

RHP

Las Vegas, NV

9.

Royals

Kevin Appier

RHP

Antelope Valley JC

10.

Padres

Kevin Garner

RHP-OF

U of Texas

11.

Athletics

Lee Tinsley

OF

Shelbyville, KY

12.

Expos

Delino DeShields

SS-2B

Seaford, DE

13.

Brewers

Bill Spiers

SS

Clemson U

14.

Cardinals

Cris Carpenter

RHP

U of Georgia

15.

Orioles

*Brad DuVall

RHP

Virginia Tech

16.

Giants

Mike Remlinger

LHP

Dartmouth College

17.

Blue Jays

Alex Sanchez

RHP

UCLA

18.

Reds

Jack Armstrong

RHP

U of Oklahoma

19.

Rangers

Brian Bohanon

LHP

Houston, TX

20.

Tigers

Bill Henderson

C

Miami, FL

21.

Tigers

Steve Pegues

OF

Pontotoc, MS

22.

Astros

Craig Biggio

C

Seton Hall U

23.

Rangers

Bill Haselman

C

UCLA

24.

Mets

Chris Donnels

3B

Loyola Marymount U

25.

Angels

John Orton

C

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

26.

Red Sox

Reggie Harris

RHP

Waynesboro, VA

* Did not sign

1988

For the second consecutive year, a record number of selections were made. There were 1,432 picks in 74 rounds, and Toronto led the way with 73 selections.
The San Diego Padres made University of Evansville right-hander Andy Benes the nation's top draft pick. Benes, who also played football and basketball in college, became the first pitcher selected number one since the Twins picked Tim Belcher in 1983. In all, 14 of the first 26 first round selections were pitchers, including four of the top five. University of Michigan pitcher Jim Abbott became the 16th drafted player to go directly to the majors. Abbott was the Angels' number one pick (8th overall) and made his major league debut against the Seattle Mariners on April 8, 1989.

The Chicago White Sox selected Oklahoma State's Robin Ventura with their number one pick (10th overall). Ventura set an NCAA record in 1988 with a 58-game hitting streak. The Montreal Expos tabbed Canadian David Wainhouse of Washington State with their number one pick (19th overall) while Pete Rose, Jr. was selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the 12th round.

First Round

Pick

Team

Player

Position

College/Hometown

1.

Padres

Andy Benes

RHP

U of Evansville

2.

Indians

Mark Lewis

SS

Hamilton, OH

3.

Braves

Steve Avery

LHP

Taylor, MI

4.

Orioles

Gregg Olson

RHP

Auburn U

5.

Dodgers

Bill Bene

RHP

Cal State - LA

6.

Rangers

Monty Fariss

SS

Oklahoma State U

7.

Astros

Willie Ansley

OF

Plainview, TX

8.

Angels

Jim Abbott

LHP

U of Michigan

9.

Cubs

Ty Griffin

2B

Georgia Tech

10.

White Sox

Robin Ventura

3B

Oklahoma State U

11.

Phillies

Pat Combs

LHP

Baylor U

12.

Red Sox

Tom Fischer

LHP

U of Wisconsin

13.

Pirates

Austin Manahan

SS

Phoenix, AZ

14.

Mariners

Tino Martinez

1B

U of Tampa

15.

Giants

Royce Clayton

SS

Playa del Rey, CA

16.

Athletics

Stan Royer

3B

Eastern Illinois U

17.

Indians

Charles Nagy

RHP

U of Connecticut

18.

Royals

Hugh Walker

OF

Jacksonville, AR

19.

Expos

David Wainhouse

RHP

Washington State U

20.

Twins

Johnny Ard

RHP

Manatee JC

21.

Mets

Dave Proctor

RHP

Allen County CC

22.

Cardinals

John Ericks

RHP

U of Illinois

23.

Cardinals

Brad DuVall

RHP

Virginia Tech

24.

Brewers

*Alex Fernandez

RHP

Miami, FL

25.

Blue Jays

Ed Sprague

3B

Stanford U

26.

Tigers

Rico Brogna

1B

Watertown, CT

* Did not sign

1989

The draft produced a record number of selections (1,483) for the third year in a row and a record number of rounds (88). The Astros led all teams with a record 88 selections. Three of the top five players were drafted out of high school. Overall there were 597 high school players selected, the highest total since 1970, when 646 were chosen. Atlanta signed its first 14 selections, the most of any team.

The Baltimore Orioles, the first team since the draft began in 1965 to have the first pick and be in first place at the same time, made Louisiana State right-handed pitcher Ben McDonald, a two-time All-American and Olympic Gold Medalist, the draft's top pick.

The Toronto Blue Jays selected John Olerud, Baseball America's NCAA Player of the Year for 1987-88, as their third round pick and signed him on August 26th. Olerud went straight to the majors, the 17th player to do so, and went 2-for-4 against the Orioles in his first major league game.

Right-handed pitcher Scott Burrell from Hamden (CT) High School was the Mariners' number one pick (26th overall), but he opted for the University of Connecticut where he led the Huskies' basketball team to the NCAA Tournament.

A draftee that falls into the one that got away category is catcher Mike Piazza, who was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers as their final pick of the draft in the 62nd round.